LSC-Montgomery Student Art Show

Last Thursday was such a busy day it's going to take three posts to write about it! This post is about the first event of the day -- the reception for the LSC-Montgomery annual student juried art show. What a mouthful! And actually the first event of the day was to meet Charlene and Glenda at Starbucks for a little pre-show frappacino fortification! Always yummy!

This was a juried show, which means that a juror was hired to select works for the show from the pool of student entries. The intent is that the "lesser" pieces are eliminated, and the resulting show is high quality and cohesive. Closer to the truth is perhaps that the juror selects his or her personal preferences to get down to a show of manageable size, and a different juror would select different pieces. It's important for students to keep this in mind and not feel terribly dejected and rejected if their artwork is not chosen. If you're an artist, you better get used to rejection!

The juror was from the Houston Center for Contemporary Craft, and was on hand to discuss his selections and awards, which was interesting and informative. He said that most of the pieces he eliminated had problems with presentation, and indeed all of his selections were framed. In a way I think it's too bad that a student has to go to the expense of having his or her work framed in order to be considered, but of course presentation is of utmost importance, and is a lesson best learned early on. I'm also sure that many of the eliminated pieces were ones that were too similar (i.e. same class assignment) to the ones he selected, and too many of the same doesn't give the show enough variety.

I am proud of all of my students this semester -- all have produced and achieved and some have made true breakthroughs! I appreciate those who took the time and went to the expense of entering the show, and I'm especially proud of those who were selected and awarded! Drumroll please!

This is Amy with her incredible ink drawing of her son, which received an honorable mention. The assignment was a gridded image, and she filled each tiny square with designs, many of them in a winter theme to go with the image of the bundled up baby. I wish you could see the image more closely -- each square deserves to be scrutinized! If you live in the area, get over to the gallery in Building D at the LCS-Montgomery campus by May 13th to see Amy's work and the whole show.

Here is Cindy, who was successful in having both of her entries selected for the show, and the piece at right was awarded Best in 2-D. Woo hoo!!! Again, I wish you could really see it -- and sorry for the glare that I captured on the glass. It's a pencil drawing that she did last semester in my drawing class of a guitar wrapped in a blanket (I think it's a blanket!). The blanket is wrapped around the neck of the guitar with a set of headphones, which was a clever choice. What you can't see is the incredibly painstaking rendering of the objects, and her skill with graphite. The artwork on the left is an acrylic painting in white, black, and three shades of gray, and was painted this semester as a design assignment. This was an early effort at painting, and what a result!! Kudos, Cindy!

Another student who had two works selected for the show is Dru, shown here with everyone's favorite, Robby, ceramics instructor extraordinaire. This piece is a watercolor, masterfully painted by this experienced watercolorist, and beautifully presented in a handcrafted wood frame. It's so convenient to have a brother who can work miracles in wood!

Dru's other piece, barely showing below behind the crowd, was also a watercolor, and like Amy's, was a gridded image of her baby. Whoops, it's not HER baby (she just thinks he is) but her grandbaby, Reid. Beautifully painted in pastel yet boyish tones, the artist has embedded symbols of babyhood, such as a rattle, bottle, or toy, within the larger portrait of the baby.

Blocking the portrait of Reid, from left to right, is me, the instructor; Charlene, a student, nurse, and accomplished artist; Dru, student, retired art teacher, and adoring grandmother; Gloria, Dru's sister-in-law, married to master craftsperson Lonnie, and a very creative person in her own right; and Glenda, also a student and accomplished artist. Oh, and they are also my good friends!